


Find Me

by Ash_Panda



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-21
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-25 18:47:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7543864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ash_Panda/pseuds/Ash_Panda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Melissa Duran, a small town bookstore owner with an eidetic memory is suddenly thrown into danger when a new serial killer pops up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The bookstore was empty for most of the day, with only a few people wandering in. The news droned on in the background, discussing a new serial killer that popped up in California. I focused on the book sitting open on the counter, barely noticing the bell above the door ring. "

Excuse me, are you Melissa Duran?" A voice said, pulling me from my book. I lifted my eyes, studying the two people standing before me, a well built bald man and a younger man with sandy brown hair.

"Sorry, how can I help you?" I asked.

The older man spoke up, "I'm SSA Derek Morgan, and this is Doctor Reid. We're from the BAU and-"

"You're investigating the murders, right? The one connected to that serial killer?" I asked, cutting him off. When the two looked surprised, I motioned to the TV screen behind them, where the news was still playing. "What can I do for you?"

"We believe the killer has an interest in books. Both victims were owners of bookstores. We just wanted to ask if you've seen anyone suspicious hanging around." The younger man said.

I shook my head, "No, not that I can think of. It's mostly college students and hipsters. Most of the traffic is at the larger places near the center of town..." My voice trailed off as I got an idea. "Are you sure the unsub's fixation is on books?" I asked. The two detectives stared at me.

Detective Morgan spoke up after a moment, "I don't understand, what do you know?"

I hesitated slightly, "Well, it's just a guess but there are dozens of bookstores around here, both independent and chain owned. It's near a campus, so the popularity is high. I knew the victims, I had been to their stores before. The stores themselves are totally different. Different sizes, different types of novels...

But the owners were similar. Late 20s, intelligent, extreme lovers of books. Jessica Hane knew Victor Hugo's novels like the back of her hand, and Hanna Klein participated in reenactments of classic novels all the time." I explained.

Detective Reid nodded, turning to his partner, "The owners could be surrogates for a lost love. "

"That would explain the lack of physical damage. Maybe the unsub only kills the women when they don't fit his fantasy." Detective Morgan agreed.

They turned back to me, doctor Reid's eyes studying me carefully, "How did you know all of that?"

"I'm alone with books a lot. I have an entire criminal psychology collection." I said with a shrug.

"If what you said turns out to be true, you may be at risk." Detective Morgan said to me. He took a pad of paper and a pen from his pocket, jotting down a number.

"I suggest you keep an eye out. Call this number if you see anything suspicious, alright?" He said.

I nodded, "Will do. If there's anything I can do to help out, you know where to find me." I said, taking the paper and slipping it into a drawer behind the counter.

The two detectives said their goodbyes and walked out of the store, though it was only a minute before Detective Reid re-entered, "Will you come to the station to speak with the rest of our team? They might be interested in what you have to say."

I glanced around at the empty shop, and then to the large clock on one of the walls. It was only an hour until closing time, anyways, and no one ever came in so late. "Sure, let me lock up and I'll meet you down there. Unless you're scared I'll run and you would rather escort me there yourselves." I joked.

There was a ghost of a smile on his lips as he shook his head, "I think we can trust you."

He turned and walked back out of the store, and I began the process of locking up. First emptying the cash register, then putting that money in the safe in my office, locking the safe, locking my office, and then turning off all of the lights. I was just finishing locking my office when I heard the bell above to door ring. I returned to the main room of the store to find a man, not much older than myself browsing the shelves. "I'm really sorry, but we're closing early today," I said, and he looked up at me in surprise.

"Oh, really? I'm just looking for a book. It's my favorite but my copy was damaged. I'll be quick, I swear." He said.

I let out a defeated sigh, "What book are you looking for?"

"The Phantom of the Opera." I walked out from behind the counter, directing him to the shelf where several copies of the novel sat. "Not many people claim that this is your favorite book. I can see why you like it, though." I said.

I studied him as I spoke. The man had a scar on the left side of his face. He refused to meet my eyes, turning his face away as if he was ashamed. "Do you like the book?" He asked as I led him back towards the counter.

"Of course. I've read it through about 3 times already. This'll be $10.95."

The man handed me a 20 dollar bill, and I realized I had already cleaned out the register, "I'm sorry, but I don't have any change for this. Do you have a card?" I asked.

The man just shook his head, picking up the book, "Keep the change." He said, barely giving me a goodbye before rushing out of my store.

I finished locking up and began the drive to the police station that was only a few streets away, the image of the man burned into my mind. When I arrived, the two agents I had already spoken to were waiting for me along with another man I recognized as head of the BAU.

"You must be Melissa. I'm Agent Aaron Hotchner." The man greeted me, shaking my hand. "Reid and Morgan said you had some insight on the victims?"

I nodded, "Yes sir, I do. While we competed in the business world, we were all just book lovers at heart."

"I'd like to ask you a few questions if you don't mind." Doctor Reid said.

"Of course, I'm happy to do all that I can to help," I replied.

He led me back to the area that must've been serving as the BAU's office. He motioned to a chair on one side of a large table and moved to sit on the other side.

"Did you meet with Jessica and Hannah often?" He asked.

"Every so often, we would meet at bars and such and discuss the books we were reading. It was sort of like a book club, but with more alcohol. I had just met with them two days before Jessica went missing."

"Did she mention anything out of the ordinary happening? Maybe the feeling of being watched, or an abnormal customer?"

I thought back to that night. We had met at a small bar, one we attended often. Everything was normal. Jessica was exactly as she always was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_"I finished reading War and Peace," I said._

_The two women rolled their eyes._

_"Already? Honestly, Melissa, I'm beginning to doubt you actually read the books at all. Weren't you reading Little Women when we last met?" Hannah asked, taking a sip of her wine._

_"I finished it. It wasn't too bad, honestly. So, Jessica, how's Phantom of the Opera going?"_

_"It's... going. I prefer the musical, but reading the book did get me some attention." Jessica replied_

_"Oh really, do tell," Hannah said eagerly._

_"Well, I was reading it in the shop. It was a slow day, really. Suddenly, this guy walked up to me and started talking to me. He said that it was his favorite book, and asked if I was enjoying it."_

_"What was he like, was he cute?" Hannah asked. I sat back in my chair, wholly uninterested in the gossip._

_"He was... Nice." Jessica replied slowly._

_Hannah raised an eyebrow at her, "Nice? So he wasn't cute,"_

_"Well... He could've been cute. He was kinda mysterious, though. We flirted for a bit and then... He just left."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Doctor Reid listened to my story carefully.

"Do you think the 'mystery man' could be the unsub?"

"It's possible that the man Jessica described could have seen her as some sort of surrogate. Can you wait here for a moment?" He asked.

I simply nodded and watched as he left the room. Through the window, I could see him talking to Agent Hotchner and another Italian man I didn't recognize. Hotchner glanced at me through the window and nodded to something Doctor Reid had said. All three of the men came back into the room.

"We fear that you may be at risk," Hotchner said.

The man I didn't recognize spoke up next. "With your permission, we'd like to assign Reid to watch over you. He'll come into your store with you when you open, and leave when you close."

"Wouldn't losing one of your agents interfere with the investigation? If Doctor Reid is with me, then he won’t be able to help with the case.”

“Actually, since we believe the unsub watches his victims before he takes them, it might be beneficial to us. I could spot him and take him down before he tries to hurt you.” Doctor Reid said.

“If it won’t effect the case negatively, then I’ll agree to the protection.”


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, doctor Reid was waiting for me at the store dressed in a red sweater over a white button-up shirt. He didn't look like an agent of the FBI at all. In fact, he looked like the type of person you would find at a small bookstore. He was sitting on the small bench that sat in front of the shop, a large book in his hands which he seemed to be reading rather quickly.

"Good morning, Doctor Reid," I greeted as I unlocked the door, "How long have you been waiting here for me?"

He stood from the bench, swiftly moving to hold open the door for me like a gentleman, "Not too long. Half an hour at most. And please, call me Spencer,"

"Thank you, Spencer," I said with a polite smile, walking into the store and beginning my morning routine, which started with turning on the lights. As I finished that, I headed back to my office to check the safe and quickly finish some paperwork, "You can sit at one of those couches over there if you wish. And feel free to read any of the books in the store," I called to Spencer.

"Actually, I think I've read most of these." He called back.

"Me too, I could recite them for you if you'd like," I said, laughing quietly. I finished up the paperwork, placing it in a file on my desk and returning to the main room of the store.

Rose Books was a store I opened shortly after I got out of college. It was mostly a way for me to constantly be around what I loved most, books. It was a small store, with only one room filled to the brim with novels of all different genres, most of which I had read and could recite with nearly perfect accuracy.

"Well, we're going to be here for a while, we might as well make the time interesting, no? We can take turns asking each other questions. How many doctorates do you have, and what are they in?" I asked as I began organizing the bookshelves, which I didn't have time to do the day before.

"Three: Mathematics, Chemistry, and Engineering," He answered promptly.

I peered around a bookshelf to look at him, eyebrows raised, "Really? Impressive. Your turn."

"You said you could recite most of the books to me. What did you mean?" He asked, his brown eyes watching me as I came out from behind the bookshelf, only to head behind another one.

"I mean I can literally recite them. I have an eidetic memory," I explained.

The only response that I earned from Spencer was a "Huh."

"What is it?" I asked as I moved to sit in the large chair that was positioned across from the couch Spencer was sitting on.

"Well, only about 10% of the Earth's population had an eidetic memory. I just thought it was... coincidental that two people out of that small percentage happened to be thrown together." He explained quickly.

I was about to say something along the lines of the theories of fate when the bell move the shop door rang. I quickly stood to greet the customer, who was just a slightly flustered first-year college student. Spencer busied himself with the book he had brought with him, though occasionally I would catch him sneaking glimpses at me. I helped the student find the book she was looking for, which took way longer that it should have, and walked with her to the counter where she paid for the book. As soon as she was gone, I returned to Spencer, who had finished reading his book and had moved on to one of the various novels I had in stock.

I decided to leave him be, grabbing a book from one of the shelves and sitting silently across from him again.

After a few minutes, Spencer’s voice pulled me from the book, “It’s your turn.” He said quietly.

I looked up at him with an amused smirk, “Alright. Favorite book?” I asked.

He answered without hesitation, “I’ve never read a book I didn’t love.”

It was another hour before the usual steady stream of people came around. Most of that time was spent with Spencer and I playing our little game. I learned that he graduated from both high school and college at a very young age. He learned that I, too, graduated high school early, but at a much older age than him. Most of our questions were simple, discussing what our interests were, and complaining about novels that were turned into movies.

But then Spencer looked at me with his intense eyes, “Why were you studying psychology ?” He asked.

I winced slightly. I had told him that I majored in psychology, specifically criminal psychology. “I… I wanted to be in the FBI. Specifically in the BAU. I started training for it, too.” I admitted.

“Why didn’t you finish it?” He asked.

I sighed quietly, “My father got sick, so I dropped my training to take care of him. I was planning to start it again as soon as he got better.”

“He never got better, did he?” Spencer asked quietly.

I simply shook my head, and he gave me a sympathetic look that made my heart feel like it was melting. Suddenly, two students entered the store and I left Spencer to help them.

The customers kept me busy for a while, and I was distracted enough to almost forget that Spencer was there at all. It wasn’t until I saw him talking quietly on the phone, his face serious that I realized that I was still in danger. I began to grow worried, fearing the unsub was there. I looked around the store, keeping my face totally calm as to not alert any suspicion. There was no one odd or out of place. When Spencer got off of the phone, he glanced around the store just as I had, then returned his attention to the fourth book I had seen him reading since he entered the store.

Slowly, the traffic of customers died down as the day slid to a close. I began cleaning up the store, and I noticed Spencer beginning to put back the many books he had taken from my shelves.

I went to go help him, taking the opportunity to ask the question that had been burned into the back of my mind for the past few hours, “What did you see?”

I assumed he would have asked what I meant, but it seemed he understood, “Nothing. I just… I had an idea.”

“What was it?” I asked.

He picked up the copy of the Phantom of the Opera that sat on the couch, “You said that Jessica was reading this when the mystery man went up to talk to her, and she believed it was the reason he spoke to her in the first place, right?”

I simply nodded, prompting him to continue, “What if he doesn’t have some sort of vendetta against young attractive female bookstore owners? What if… What if he believes he is the Phantom, and-”

“And he’s looking for his Christine Daae.” I finished quietly. “That explains why he killed Hannah and Jessica. Jessica probably never even finished the book, and Hannah wouldn’t know the story well enough to recognize that she had a role she was supposed to be playing.” I said, feeling a slight pang in my chest as I spoke of them which I quickly buried.

Suddenly, Spencer’s phone began ringing. He answered it with a quiet voice, “Yeah?” He listened intently before answering, “I’m on my way.” He hung up the phone, turning to look at me, “Hotch… Agent Hotchner wants me back at the station.”

“Go, I’m about to close up shop anyways.” I said. He looked hesitant and I sighed quietly, “I’ll be fine. I can always call that number SSA Morgan gave me if something goes wrong, right?”

He nodded finally. He seemed reluctant to leave me alone, but he knew I was right. The unsub was less likely to show up anywhere outside of the store since that’s where we assumed he had stalked his last two victims.

As soon as he left, I quickly finished locking up the store, eager to get home to relax. I lived in a decent sized apartment, paid for by both the book store’s earnings and the money I had inherited from my father.

I unlocked the door and flipped on the lights, letting out a soft sigh of relief as I dropped my bag by the door. I closed and relocked the door behind me, going through the same old routine I had been doing for years, mostly out of habit. Go through the mail, turn on the T.V, make dinner, watch T.V and eat dinner, clean up, turn off T.V, head to closet…

I froze, staring at the contents of my closet. Most of my clothes were casual: jeans, blouses, the occasional skirt or casual dress. But I kept three dresses that I only wore on special occasions. Those dresses hung at the side of my closet, barely worn and never moved. But as I stared into the closet, I knew something was wrong. One of the dresses was missing.

I swallowed hard, slowly closing the closet door and heading towards my bedroom, keeping my back to the wall. I flipped on the lights, taking a careful look around before stepping inside, heading for my nightstand where I kept my small handgun I had bought for protection. As I pulled the weapon from the drawer, I heard the lock on my front door click, and then the door was opened and closed a moment later.

With one hand gripping the gun, I pulled my phone from my pocket, quickly dialing the number SSA Morgan had given me.

As it rang, I glanced at the clock. It was already 10:30 p.m, and for a brief moment, I was afraid no one would pick up.

But then a deep, sleepy voice answered, “Hello?”

“SSA Morgan?” I asked quickly, trying to calm the shaking in my own voice.

“Yeah, this is Morgan.” The voice answered.

I gripped the phone tightly as I spoke again, my voice even weaker than before despite my efforts to make it sound normal, “This is Melissa Duran… He was here.”


	3. Chapter 3

The BAU were at my apartment in 7 minutes. The members I didn’t know introduced themselves to me. There was the blonde, kind-looking woman who called herself JJ, and the Italian man I had seen earlier who told me to just call him Rossi. As they searched my apartment, I quickly learned how things worked amongst them. They all called each other by their last names, except for JJ, Hotch, and their tech analyst who they spoke to over the phone, Penelope. 

“He only took a dress?” SSA Derek Morgan asked. 

“It would actually make sense. The unsub may be preparing his fantasy.” Spencer explained. 

Until that moment, I had been holding strong, trying to ignore the fact that there was a killer stalking me. But something inside me snapped, and I could feel myself growing cold. 

JJ noticed first, rushing over to put her arm around me and lead me to sit on my bed, “Are you okay?” She asked softly. 

I nodded slowly, “Yeah, it’s just… overwhelming. What if you don’t catch him in time?” I said shakily. “He knows where I live, where I work... I’m scared.” 

SSA Morgan moved to kneel down in front of me, “Melissa, I swear we will do everything we can to keep you safe, but you need to stay calm, okay?” He said, his deep voice rather soothing. I nodded again. “Good. Now, you need to keep to your normal routine as much as possible. This guy may not know we’re watching you yet, and we want to keep it that way.”

“So, what? Am I just supposed to go to sleep knowing this guy knows how to get into my apartment?” I asked. 

“You can come sleep at the station if you’ll feel safer there,” JJ suggested.

I was about to take the offer, but Agent Hotchner shook his head, “No, you need to stay here in case he’s watching your apartment. One of us can stay here with you tonight and try to pass ourselves off as a friend visiting you for the night.”

“I’ll stay.” Spencer volunteered. “I’m the closest to Melissa’s age, and I don’t exactly look like an FBI agent.”

Agent Hotchner nodded, “JJ can bring you your go-bag later.” He said to Spencer before turning back to me, “Try to get some rest tonight.”

I muttered a quiet ‘thank you’ and watched as everyone except for Spencer filed out of my apartment.

“I’ll get you some blankets and a pillow. I’m sorry the couch isn’t very comfortable, but it’s all I have considering I never have guests over.” I said. 

He shrugged slightly, “I’ll be fine, really.”

I nodded and got him blankets and pillows as I had promised, making sure he was comfortable and telling him he could eat, read, and watch anything he wished. I then finished getting ready for bed, changing into a pair of loose-fitting shorts and a t-shirt and washing off my face. 

As I turned out the lights and slid into my bed, however, I quickly discovered I couldn’t sleep. Soon, every shadow and sound became the killer despite my best efforts to erase it from my mind. Even when I finally started to drift off, it wasn’t too long before I was jolted awake by a nightmare. 11 o’clock turned to midnight, and midnight turned to 1 a.m.

Eventually, I got out of bed and threw on my robe, preparing to sneak past Spencer, who I assumed would be sleeping, to get a snack from my kitchen. As I tip-toed to the living room, however, I discovered Spencer, still wide awake and sitting on my couch, flipping through my copy of Les Miserables like it was a magazine. 

He heard me enter and looked up, offering me a soft, sympathetic smile, “Couldn’t sleep?” He asked softly. I shook my head and he frowned slightly, moving over on the couch, “Do you… Do you need someone to talk to?”

I hesitated slightly before nodding, moving to sit down next to him, “So, what’s keeping you awake?” I asked quietly.

He shrugged slightly, “Just… Couldn’t sleep.” He said softly. 

I nodded slowly. “Thank you.” I half-whispered after a moment. 

“For what?” He asked.

“For being here. I mean, I know it’s your job to protect people but… You’re here at my apartment at 1 a.m. making sure I don’t get hurt. It almost makes me wish I had met you outside of a case. Maybe we could’ve been… friends.” I explained quietly, wincing at the stupidity of my words.

He smiled softly, “I think I would’ve liked that,” He said quietly.

“Maybe after I avoid getting kidnapped and murdered.” I joked, feeling a slight pain in my chest. I stood from the couch, “You know what helps me sleep? Peppermint hot chocolate. Want some?” I asked. He nodded, and I walked off to the kitchen, quickly preparing the drinks. 

We ended up talking all night. Without meaning to, I ended up telling him everything I had kept bottled up for years, starting with when my mom killed herself when I was young, and my father struggling to keep himself sober enough to take care of me, but ultimately failing. He was a good man, but the grief was too much for him to handle. I told Spencer about dropping out of college before I could get my doctorate in Psychology and picking up two jobs to take care of him and myself because he refused to touch the savings account he had set up for me when I was born so that after he died, I had more than enough money. I told him about the moment I received the call from the hospital, explaining that my father’s liver was failing, and how I dropped my training to go take care of him. I told him about watching my father die, and wishing I could forget it, but I couldn’t. 

Spencer listened quietly, his hand encasing mine. He never spoke, but I could tell he was actually listening, and not just zoning out. As I neared the end of my story, I could feel the tears pricking at the back of my eyes. I was never one to get very emotional, but the way Spencer held my hand, it made me want to curl up in his arms and bawl my eyes out. 

After a minute or two of silence, he stood from the couch and walked off to my bedroom, only to return a minute later with my phone in his hands. He turned the screen on and held it out for me to unlock it. As soon as I did so, he added his number into his contacts. 

“This is for after the case is over.” He explained. 

“I just told you my entire life story, which was plain depressing and uninteresting, and you still want to talk after this whole thing blows over?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at him. 

“Well... Yeah.” He said, nodding and acting as if my question didn’t make any sense. 

I glanced up at the clock and realized Spencer and I had been talking for over 4 hours, and it was already 5:30 in the morning. The alarm I had set on my phone to wake me up in the morning began blaring loudly, and I scrambled to turn it off. 

“Well, I guess I’d better get ready for work. Detective JJ said she’d bring by your stuff, right?” I asked. 

He nodded, and I ran off to the bathroom to take a shower and wash the weariness off of me.  
I washed my hair thoroughly, then the rest of my body. As I crawled out of the shower I wrapped a gray towel around my frame. I dried my hair, pulling it back into a loose ponytail and quickly applying the bare minimum amount of makeup. As I left the bathroom, which was only a few steps away from my bedroom, I found myself crashing face-first into something, or rather, someone. 

“Shit!” I half yelled, gripping at my towel. 

I looked up to see Spencer, covering his eyes with his hand, “Shit, Melissa, I’m so sorry, I didn’t know you were gonna come out. I was just going to knock on the door and ask if I could take a shower after you. I wasn’t-” 

“It’s fine, you’re fine. Yeah, you can take a shower. There're towels in the big cabinet by the sink,” I said, quickly slipping past him to my room, shutting my door behind me. I waited to hear him shuffle off to the bathroom and close the door before finally dropping the towel and heading off over to my closet. I picked out my casual forest green dress, deciding that it would be more comfortable than pants. It was casual enough for me to wear a pair of black Converse as well, which was always a plus.

When I was finished getting ready, Spencer was still in the bathroom, presumably getting dressed. I headed off to the kitchen, starting the coffee machine and searching through my pantry for something to eat. When I discover I was out of cereal and frozen waffles, I decided to make pancakes from scratch, which I had been doing since I was a child. By the time Spencer got done getting ready, I was already cooking my 6th pancake.

“Coffee’s over there, the mugs are in the cabinet next to the fridge, the cream is in the fridge on the second shelf, and the sugar is right there next to the coffee maker. Breakfast will be ready in a minute.” I said. 

Spencer poured the both of us cups of coffee, and I noticed he put quite a bit of sugar in his. Actually ‘quite a bit’ would be an understatement. He put a shit ton of sugar in his cup, and for some reason, I felt myself beginning to grin. Perhaps it was because it gave away how young he really was. Underneath his genius exterior, he was really just a kid, drinking sugary drinks and staying up all night.

I turned off the stove as I transferred the last pancake over to the plate with the rest. I set the plate on the very small table that sat in my kitchen, along with the syrup, butter, plates, forks, and my favorite, peanut butter. 

Spencer handed me my coffee, which I deluded with much cream and sugar, and moved to sit at the table. “You put peanut butter on your pancakes?” He asked, his eyebrows raised. 

I nodded, “I picked it I was little. My family and I would go on road trips and stay at hotels that served complimentary breakfast. They ran out of butter once, so my little 5-year-old mind decided that peanut butter was close enough. I’ve just been eating it ever since.” I explained, spreading the substance on my pancakes before drenching them in syrup. 

He reached for the butter, his hand stopping before he could get some, and instead going for the jar of peanut butter, spreading it on only one of his pancakes and pouring syrup over it, just as I had. He took a very hesitant bite as if he was afraid that it would taste horrible. As soon as he finished the bite, though, he immediately spread it on the rest of the stack.  
“This is delicious!” He exclaimed, stuffing down his breakfast eagerly.

I laughed and quickly finished off my own food, cleaning up our dishes. I downed the rest of my coffee, as well as another cup. “Well, if Agent Hotchner wants me to stick to my schedule, I should get going,” I said, feeling a lump forming in my throat. 

Spencer could see my hesitation, and he frowned, “He won’t get you. My team and I won’t let him.” He reassured me quietly, and I nodded, gathering my things and heading out of my apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Over 2000 words!? This is the longest chapter I've ever written for anything. The next chapter will either be good or really, really bad.


	4. Chapter 4

The store was somewhat quiet for most of the day, though there was always at least one customer browsing around which kept me from talking any further to Spencer. I was exhausted, the lack of sleep finally catching up to me. I could tell Spencer was getting tired too, and at one point he started dozing off on the couch he was sitting on. 

“There’s a couch in my office,” I told him the moment we were alone. 

He looked up from the book he was reading, “What?” 

“There’s a couch in my office in the back. I take naps on it sometimes during my lunch breaks. You’re welcome to go back there and sleep for a bit.” I suggested. I could see his hesitation, and I frowned, “Please go sleep? I’d feel safer knowing you’re fully conscious when you’re actually awake. The walls of the office are paper-thin, so I’m sure you’ll be able to hear if anything happens.”

After another moment of hesitation, he finally nodded. I showed him to the small room at the back of the store that contained a desk, a very comfy chair with wheels, and a small green leather couch. 

“I should call in someone else. What if something happens while I’m asleep?” He asked quietly.

“Look like I said, the walls of this office are super thin. You can hear everything going on in the main room. I’ll bang on the wall if anything happens.”

After Spencer had finally curled up on the couch, which was quite an amusing sight considering the couch was small and his legs were long, I returned to the shop to tend to some customers who had apparently been waiting for me. 

For a while after that, it seemed that the day would go off without a hitch, and I would be able to go home. But then I saw him. He must’ve slipped in when I was helping someone find a book and hid in the restroom because I didn’t notice him. But as soon as I locked the door to the shop and flipped the open sign to closed, he came out. He grabbed me from behind, pressing a large hand to my face to muffle my screaming. 

“Don’t scream, it’s me, your angel.” The man whispered in my ear.

I struggled against his grasp, trying to make enough noise to alert Spencer to the situation. I was too far from the wall to bang on it. If I could just get closer…

“Where is he? That idiot boy who’s trying to steal what’s mine. Where is he?”

I shook my head violently. He knew about Spencer. I couldn’t tell him he was here. He could attack him. I murmured against his hand, and he moved it so I could speak, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I saw you leaving your apartment with him. I know you came here together. Where is he?”

“He went home. I sent him home.” I said desperately. 

“Would you lie to your angel?” He asked. I could feel rope against my wrists. He was tying me up, not tight enough to hurt me but tight enough to keep me from getting loose. I could use this to my advantage. I majored in psychology, which meant I could read this guy. He didn’t want to hurt me. He was delusional, and he believed that he loved me and, if he was truly mimicking the Phantom, he must have believed I love him. I had to play to his fantasy long enough to earn his trust to get away.

I shook my head quickly, “No, no it’s the truth. I knew you would be mad.” I said. 

A sound came from my office. Spencer was waking up. 

“Shh, what was that?” He asked, pressing his mouth to my face once more. “Stay here. Don’t make a sound, or else your lover will pay. Understand?” 

I nodded, and he left me to stand on the wall beside the door leading into the office. It opened, and out came Spencer, gun in hand. He spotted me and took a step in my direction. 

“Melissa, where-” He began, but was cut off when the killer attacked him from behind, looping a rope around his neck and pulling tight. He wrestled Spencer’s gun away from him, and, while pointing it at me, tied him up. 

“My dear, we have a guest. I thought you said he went home.” The man said as he stepped in between me and Spencer, still keeping the gun trained on me.

“She didn’t know I was here. I snuck in t-to surprise her,” Spencer stammered. “Please, leave her be.” 

“Did you think that I would hurt her? She is my angel! But you! You insolent boy, you wanted to steal her from me! Now you will pay! Unless…” His voice trailed off.

I knew where this was going, and Spencer did too. He struggled against the ropes, “No… No!” 

“Make your choice. Come with me and be mine, and he will go free. Choose to leave, and he dies, but you leave untouched,” The man said, turning to point the gun at Spencer. 

“Melissa, go. Leave.” Spencer ordered. 

“He’s done nothing wrong! Let him go!” I pleaded.

“Make your choice, my patience wears thin.” 

“Do you swear he won’t be harmed?” I asked slowly.

Spencer shook his head, “Melissa don’t. It’s not worth it! I’m not worth it. He may kill you!” 

“He will not be harmed, you have my word.”

I took a deep breath, stepping towards the man, “I’ll go with you.” 

“Melissa, no!” Spencer yelled. 

The man walked towards him, reaching forward and pulling his phone from his pocket and placing it in his tied hands. 

“Call for help, but do not follow us, or you will both die.” The man ordered before grabbing my shoulder and yanking me out of the back door of the shop. He led me to a black car that was parked in the alleyway. He opened the back door and removed a back from the seat, opening it out of my line of sight so I couldn’t see what he was doing.

“Forgive me, my love. But these are precautions I must take. I won’t lose you.” He murmured. Before I could ask what he meant, I felt a sharp prick in my neck, and within seconds the world went black.


	5. Chapter 5

After Spencer had managed to call Rossi using the voice command on his phone, the team arrived on the scene within five minutes. He cried as Morgan untied him, his ramblings almost incoherent. 

“Kid, listen to me, you’ve gotta calm down for a second. What happened?” Morgan asked, placing a hand on Reid’s shoulder, which he shrugged off. 

The son of a bitch had taken her after they had promised her they wouldn’t let it happen. There was no way that Spencer was going to calm down. He quickly called Garcia, who answered within seconds.

“Look for someone in their mid-twenties to early thirties who was put into CPS when he was young. He was probably beaten by his parents, resulting in a serious injury on the left side of his face. Cross check that with men who were left by their wives no more than six weeks ago. That must’ve been his trigger.” Reid rambled. 

“Whoa, whoa, slow down there. I can only type so fast.” Penelope said, the sound of her keyboard very audible over the phone.

“Damn it, Garcia, we can’t slow down. He took her. She left with him to save me. We have to find her before he does anything to her!” He yelled. 

“Spencer, calm down. We’re not going to find anything unless you relax and get your head on straight. Now, what did he look like?” Hotch said, his voice commanding enough to quiet Reid down.

“Black hair, 6’5”, extreme burn wounds to the left side of the face that most like likely were the result of injury, blue eyes…” He listed.

“JJ, get the description out to the public and the police. Reid, what else do you remember?” Hotch asked, JJ nodding and hurrying off, phone in hand. 

“He put her in a car. A newer car. The engine sounded clean. He didn't tie her hands too tight, but he tied me up enough to hurt me.” 

“Which means that if she doesn't upset him, we have a chance to save her.” Hotch said, “Garcia, anything?” 

“I'm trying sir. There's just… Wait… Sir?” Penelope said meekly. 

“What is it?” Reid demanded, picking up the phone from where he had set it down on the table.

“17 years ago there was a 10-year-old boy named Jeremy Grate abandoned by his mother and put into CPS. According to both the boy and medical reports the mother had hit Jeremy with a very, very hot frying pan resulting in some wicked burns to the left side of his face,” She said. 

“Well, where is he?” Rossi asked.

“That's the thing. He was put into foster care, passed around from home to home… He was busted for drug use when he was a teenager… Then he got clean. Records show he became a model student, graduated high school with flying colors, and married his college sweetheart. Then… he disappears. No trail at all. His wife reported him missing… And I bet you can’t guess how long ago that happened.” Penelope said.

“Six weeks ago…” Morgan answered quietly.

“Bingo.” She confirmed.

“Morgan, you and Reid go talk to the wife and find out what she knows. Garcia, did Jeremy ever go to a therapist that helped him get clean?” Hotch asked.

“Umm… Yes. Margaret Faye. She’s now retired and living at home under the care of her daughter.” Penelope replied. 

“Rossi and I will go talk to the therapist. I’m guessing she’ll have something to do with Jeremy’s fixation on the Phantom of the Opera.” 

The team went their separate ways. Spencer was mostly silent in the car with Derek, staring down at the rope burns on his wrists. Morgan was worried. The young doctor was almost never this emotional about a case and if he was, he kept it hidden. 

“Kid, what’s the matter with you? You never let cases like this get to you.” Morgan asked.

“She left with him to save me, Morgan. She chose me over herself. We promised we wouldn’t let him hurt her. What if he kills her?” Spencer said. 

“You heard what Hotch said. As long as she doesn’t upset him, he won’t kill her. And from what I can tell, Melissa is smart enough to keep herself alive, right?”

Reid nodded slowly, “She’s brilliant.”

Derek removed a hand from the steering wheel and placed it on Spencer’s shoulder, “Then she’ll be fine. So, you seem to care about this girl an awful lot,” Morgan said, trying to hide the smirk that was beginning to form on his lips. 

“Of course, I do. We stayed up all night talking and studies show that the more time you spend with a person, especially someone like yourself, the easier it is for you to trust them.” Reid stated.

“Hold up, you stayed up all night talking to her? You didn’t sleep?” Mogan asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

Spencer shook his head, “No, I think she was having nightmares and couldn’t sleep, so we stayed up together.” 

Derek chuckled lightly, “What did she tell you?” 

“That she majored in psychology and she was in training to be in the BAU,” Spencer said quietly, feeling his throat tighten slightly, which confused him. Why was he getting so emotional about Melissa? He had learned long ago to disassociate himself with the victims, and only focus on catching who killed them. But now all he could think about was finding her alive and taking down the ass who took her from him.

“She wanted to be one of us?” Morgan asked.

Spencer was about to explain when his phone started ringing. It was a number he didn’t recognize, but it was local. He glanced over to Morgan, putting it on speaker as he answered.

“Hello?” He said carefully.

“Spencer?” A familiar voice answered. 

“Melissa is that you!?” Spencer was gripping the phone now, hanging on to it like his life depended on it. 

“I don’t have much time, I don’t think he knows I’m awake yet. Spencer, I’m scared.” Her voice was soft and shaking, the fear audible even through the phone. Reid took a deep breath, licking his lips and sending a wide-eyed glance to his companion.

Derek had brought the car to a screeching halt and was calling Garcia to have her track the number. 

“Where are you!?” Spencer asked, his voice bordering between angry and terrified. 

“I-I don’t know. Some abandoned building. I think I’m in a basement. He drugged me and I woke up here. Wait… what’s… I know where I am! Spencer, I’m-” 

There was the bang of a door, followed by barely audible yelling. Spencer held his breath, pressing his lips together.

“Angel, I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I only wanted to assure that we wouldn’t be found. Please, I didn’t want to lie to you!” Melissa pleaded.

“I trusted you, and you lied! You lied to your angel! Come here.” A deep voice ordered. 

“No, angel, please! I won’t do it again!” 

There was a thud and then a scream. Then another thud and a whimper. Spencer’s fingers fumbled to mute his line, assuming that if the call was still active, the man hadn’t seen her phone. He was taking deep breaths now and he handed the phone over to Morgan, squeezing his eyes shut. Melissa’s line was silent for a few moments aside from the soft whimpers that were barely audible over the phone. 

FInally, the man spoke again, “Tell me, that boy; that child that you allowed into your home in my place; do you love him?” 

After a moment, Melissa answered, her voice slightly muffled, and Spencer assumed it meant she had hidden the phone underneath something, “I love only you! Tomorrow, I will give you my soul. I will sing for you, and we will be one. Tomorrow, Angel, you will set the stage, and I will take it. But please, I’m hungry, and I need my strength.”

“Soon, my love. But first, there is something you need to see. Come.”

There was a rustling, and the line went dead. Spencer was pale and staring at the phone hands. 

“Baby Girl, you got it?” Morgan asked softly. He was watching Reid with wide, worried eyes.

“No. The signal wouldn’t pin on one location. I have a general area, but there’s way too much stuff in the area to be able to tell where he’s keeping her.” Garcia said sadly.

“Kid, are you alright?” Morgan asked softly, placing a hand on the doctor’s shoulder.

“You will set the stage, and I will take it…” Spencer quoted under his breath. 

“Talk to me, Reid, what’s going on?” Derek asked.

“She quoted Phantom of the Opera. Everything she said before that was a quote except ‘You will set the stage, and I will take it. I think she’s trying to tell us where she is. Garcia?” 

“Yes, boy wonder?” Garcia responded promptly.

“Are there any abandoned theaters near Melissa’s bookstore?” 

“Looking, looking… and… Nope. There’s only one theater in the city and it is very up and running.” Penelope replied. 

“I don’t understand… that should be what she meant… I don’t get it.” Spencer said quietly, his hands moving to brush through his hair. 

Derek was truly beginning to worry now. The last time Reid got this worried about someone that wasn’t a part of the team, he watched her get shot. If it happened again, would he be able to handle it? He moved his hands back to the wheel, shaking his head slightly, “We need to go talk to Jeremy’s wife. Keep looking, Baby Girl.” He said before hanging up the phone and starting up the car again.


End file.
